SF Giants officially end managerial rumors and finalize Buster Posey's bold decision

After days of speculation and bombshell reports, it appears the SF Giants are about to officially finalize a deal that will make Tony Vitello the team's next manager. Buster Posey is staking his entire reputation on this move.

According to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic, the Giants are preparing to announce the hiring of Vitello. It is an unprecedented hire as he will be the first MLB manager to jump straight from college to the professional ranks without any experience in the major leagues as a player, coach, or manager.

SF Giants set to hire Tony Vitello as next manager

It seems clear that Vitello was not Posey's first choice. His first choice was Nick Hundley, his former backup catcher with the Giants who has spent the last few years in the front office of the Texas Rangers organization.

However, Hundley apparently backed out due to family reasons so the Giants pivoted to their second choice which was Vitello.

The fact that those two were his top two choices speaks to a desire for an energy shift in the clubhouse. Bob Melvin, despite his years of experience, definitely lacked the energy that someone like Vitello will bring to the table. Vitello also represents a generational shift as a 47-year-old which fits in with the trend of younger managers across MLB.

He has had a lot of success as the head coach of the baseball team at the University of Tennessee. The team has a record of 341-131 and led the Volunteers to a College World Series title in 2024.

It remains to be seen whether that success will translate to the big leagues. Giants announcer Mike Krukow has warned of some of the issues that could await Vitello as manager and believes that the scrutiny he will be under not just from local media but from an entire league that will be interested to see how this experiment works out will be intense.

Vitello brings connections with him that should prove beneficial to the Giants. Drew Gilbert, the young spark plug who made a name for himself with his wild energy last season after the Giants traded for him from the New York Mets, played under Vitello at Tennessee.

Blade Tidwell, another trade acquistion from last season, also played under Vitello as did the team's top draft pick in the 2025 MLB Draft Gavin Kilen. Vitello also has a strong relationship with Max Scherzer which could lead to a reunion with Scherzer set to be a free agent.

We will see how this hire pans out, but Posey is certainly risking his sterling reputation on it. Nothing he does as president of baseball operations will take away what he did as a player and the three World Series titles he helped deliver to San Francisco, but if Vitello does not work out that will be a part of his legacy.

If it works out though, Posey will look like a genius and may have fundamentally changed what MLB front offices look for in managers going forward. High risk and high reward, but Posey likely wouldn't want it any other way.